


How Deep is Your Ocean?

by ikuzonos



Category: Dangan Ronpa
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-08-22 22:50:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8304218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ikuzonos/pseuds/ikuzonos
Summary: Leon and Mukuro manage to calm down a frantic Sayaka before anything can happen. The question is, what happens from there? Will the three unlikely friends be able to survive the killing game they've been faced with?
Canon Divergent AU.





	1. Ink (Leon)

**Author's Note:**

> i want them,, to be friends,,,

His heartbeat still banged against his chest cavity like it was going to pop out. The glitter on his hands itched, inflaming his palms. It was nearly pitch black in Maizono’s room, the only light coming from the dim hallway.

He awkwardly dropped the sword, and banged his sore hand against the bathroom door.

“Maizono!” Leon yelled, “Please, open the door!”

Her voice was loud and frightened, “G-G-Go away!”

Leon tried to turn the handle, but the door wouldn’t budge. Of course she’d locked it, why wouldn’t she have done that?

He banged on the door again, “Are you okay?!”

“GO AWAY!”

Leon backed away, dropping the knife onto the bed. This was really,  _ really _ bad. First, he got to watch a video that implied something had happened to Kanon. Then a girl that he really admired had tried to murder him.

On the other hand, he’d found a corn chip in his pocket earlier, so maybe the night wasn’t so awful.

“Focus, Kuwata,” he muttered to himself, “Okay, if I can’t get her to open the door… I’ll get the door to open myself.”

He had a few options. One, he could try to bust it down, but that risked him knocking it down on top of Maizono. Okay, that was out.

He could try reaching something thin under the door, and trying to hit the lock. However, Leon quickly realized that not only did he not have something that could do that, he also had no clue how the locks worked.

Leon quickly decided against attempting to seduce the door, considering what happened the last time he tried that.

That left him with the toolbox in his room. Unfortunately, Leon had no clue if there was a screwdriver in it, and even if there was, he had never used a screwdriver before in his life.

It also meant leaving Maizono alone. 

The toolbox was Leon’s best bet, and he darted out of the room, and dashed down the hall to his own room. Not bothering to shut the door or even turn on the lights, Leon threw his desk drawer open, and snatched the box.

Luckily, there were two screwdrivers. Leon prayed it would work.

With the tools tucked under his arm, Leon headed back towards Maizono’s room, only to freeze once he’d turn the corner. Someone was standing out in the hallway, and had their gaze on the open door.

He inhaled sharply, and they turned their head.

_ Shit shit shit. _

Leon looked around, but he had nowhere that he could hide. The person’s shoes clicked against the hallway floor, until they were right up close with him. Even with the darkness, not even Leon could mistake the gigantic pigtails in front of him.

“E-Enoshima?”

Junko looked him up and down, “Kuwata? What’s going on here?”

Leon tried to brush her off, “Uh, it’s nothing. Why are you awake?”

She ignored his question, “Why do you have your toolkit? ...And why is that door open?”

Sweat formed on Leon’s brow. Junko’s eyes flashed, and her fists curled, “I swear… If you-”

“No!” Leon shouted, “I didn’t kill her, I promise!”

Junko froze, “‘Her?’ Kuwata-”

_ SHIT. _

Leon brought his voice down, “I need your help. Please… It’s Maizono, and she won’t listen to me. You’ve got to try, at least for her sake.”

Junko said, “What… happened to her?”

“She tried to kill me,” Leon replied.

Junko stiffened, “She… Maizono…”

Leon nodded, “I was fighting back, and I… I broke her wrist. She ran into the bathroom and locked the door. She’s still freaking out, and I can’t get her to open the door.”

Junko looked at the toolbox, “So your plan was to force your way in?!”

Leon shrugged, “I thought it might work?”

Junko sighed, “I’ll come help you. But we’re not breaking in. If she doesn’t let us in… then the best we can do is sit outside.”

Leon swallowed, “Okay.”

He lead her back down the hallway into Maizono’s room. Junko moved through the inky blackness with surprising precision, and knocked on the bathroom door.

“I said… G-go away…” Maizono’s voice sounded ragged.

Junko spoke with a soft voice. It was so delicate that it made Leon’s heart skip a beat.

“Hey, Maizono? It’s okay, you’re not in any danger, I promise.”

Maizono choked, “E-Enoshima-san? W-What are you doing here?”

Junko replied, “I just want to help. Everything’s going to be just fine… Can you trust me on this?”

There was a long moment of silence, before Maizono responded, “I trust you.”

Junko said, “Can you open the door, then? I know it’s not locked, but I’m not sure how to get it open.”

Leon blinked, “What do you mean, it’s not locked?”

Maizono squeaked at the sound of his voice, “Ah!”

Junko said, “He’s not going to hurt you, Maizono. You trust me, right?”

“...Right,” Maizono said softly, “But, I don’t know how to open the door either.”

Leon raised his voice, “What am I missing? What’s wrong with the door?”

Junko’s head snapped around, “I thought it was obvious. This isn’t Maizono’s room, it’s Naegi’s. They probably switched rooms or something.”

_ But… her name plate… _

Leon decided not to think about it.

Junko said, “Well, how did you get in, then?”

Maizono replied, “Lift up, then turn the handle. I d-don’t know if it works the same way on this side.”

Junko followed the instructions, and the door came open without a problem. She looked at Leon, and said, “C’mon. And leave the toolbox.”

Leon nodded, as he followed Junko inside. Maizono was sitting on the ground, her back pressed against the freezing cold tile.

Junko sat down on the floor, and Leon followed suit. Maizono’s gaze flickered back and forth between them, her eyes red from crying. 

For a few minutes, they didn't speak. Then suddenly, Maizono’s raw voice broke the silence. 

“I'm sorry.”

Leon blinked, “Huh?”

Maizono repeated, “I'm sorry. For trying to kill you… For shouting…”

She broke off again, sniffling. 

Leon said, “Uh, all is forgiven?”

Tears ran down Maizono’s face, and she buried her head in her knees. 

_ Shit, did I say the wrong thing? _

Junko asked, “Do you want to talk about it at all?”

No response came for a moment. Then Maizono said, “I felt that I h-had to. You saw those videos… I had no choice.”

Leon shivered. 

Junko nodded, “They were awful. Monokuma wasn't kidding when he said he had a motive.”

Sayaka sniffed, “My idol group. He took them… and he's probably hurting them somehow. I had to g-get out.”

Leon’s mind flashed to his own video. It had been of his cousin, Kanon Nakajima. At first, the video had been nice, until everything changed and she vanished, leaving only wreckage behind.

Junko said, “Nobody could blame you for what you did. You were scared, and you weren't thinking clearly.”

Maizono whispered, “Do you really think so?”

“Kuwata already forgave you,” Junko said, “That should speak for itself.”

Maizono raised her head, and smiled weakly, “Thank you… I don’t know what I would’ve done if… If you two hadn’t come to help me.”

“What are friends for?” Leon said.

Both Maizono and Junko looked surprised when he spoke.

Junko said, “We’re… friends?”

“I’d like to think so?” Leon replied.

Maizono smiled, stronger this time. An odd smile fell on Junko’s face too, though it seemed more wistful and sad.

Leon continued, “We’re gonna be okay. You’re gonna find your band mates, I’m gonna find Kanon, and Enoshima’s gonna find… Whoever!”

“Kanon?” Maizono asked.

Leon replied, “My cousin. She means the world to me, and I’m really worried about what the fucking bear has done to her.”

She looked away, her face contorting in pain again. When she spoke again, her words were slow, “Enoshima-san? Who did they take from you?”

Junko bit down on her lip, before saying, “My sister. He’s threatening my sister. She’s… the most important person in my life, and I would do anything for her, even die. I don’t know what I would do without her…”

“God damn it,” Maizono whispered, “I was so selfish, thinking I was the only one who was suffering…”

Junko reached out a hand, and placed it on Maizono’s shoulder, “Hey. Don’t feel guilty. Yeah, you might have done something not so great, but it doesn’t make you a bad person.”

There was something in Junko’s eyes that looked familiar. Just the way that she looked at Maizono made Leon think that perhaps they were closer than he thought.

For some reason, though, it made him feel sick. He couldn’t quite place why, but it made his stomach feel heavy.

Something sharp seemed to be pricking him at the back of his mind, but he ignored it, and scooted closer to them.

They spoke in hushed voices for hours, until the lights came on in the hallways, and the sickening Monokuma Announcement blared overhead.

Leon said, “Let’s go.”

Maizono and Junko nodded.

“Let’s.”


	2. Guard (Sayaka)

The three of them walked down to the dining hall together. Sayaka clung to Junko’s arm, while Leon flanked the model’s other side.

Her right wrist felt heavy at her side, useless and broken as it was. As long as she didn't try to move it, it didn't hurt too much, but it was still an awful feeling. 

The dining hall was mostly empty when they arrived. Ishimaru was sitting at the head of the table, and Sakura and Fujisaki were seated nearby, but otherwise, everyone else was gone. 

They sat down together, hoping not to attract a ton of attention, but it was futile. 

Ishimaru said, “Kuwata-kun, Enoshima-kun! I'm glad to see the two of you so early!”

Junko yawned. “Just doing my part.”

Leon nodded, and rubbed his eyes. Both of them looked exhausted, and Sayaka was sure that she was no better. 

“What about me?” Sayaka asked, “Don't I get a greeting?”

Ishimaru replied, “My apologies. I simply wished to congratulate these two for subverting my expectations. After all, they are the more ‘rebellious type’ compared to you."

Leon grumbled, “We're right here, y’know.”

Junko snorted. “Just ignore him. He doesn’t mean it like that.”

Leon rolled his eyes.

The next person to enter the dining hall was Asahina, who promptly settled down next to Sakura with a cheerful grin. After her, came Naegi, and Sayaka felt herself go stiff.

“Hi!” Naegi said cheerfully, as he sat down next to her.

She swallowed. “Hey, Naegi-kun.”

Naegi saw through her quickly. “Are you okay? What happened to your arm, Maizono-san?”

Sayaka bit her lip. “Can… Can you wait a bit? I want to talk to everyone about it.”

Naegi blinked. “O-Okay.”

The students waited in silence as people filtered in one by one. The last people to arrive were Fukawa and Togami, who didn’t even bother sitting at the main table, and instead chose to gather off to the side. 

Ishimaru spoke, but Sayaka couldn't bring herself to listen. Her vision kept fading in and out, as she imagined the reactions to what she did. 

They were going to hate her. She was certain. 

Why wouldn't they? After all, she had nearly killed someone, and that made her dangerous. 

Ishimaru’s sharp, “Does anyone here have anything they'd like to say?” brought her back to reality, and she clumsily got to her feet. 

“Yes, Maizono-kun?” Ishimaru said.

Sayaka gulped, suddenly feeling nervous. Her stomach twisted, and her throat burned. Junko lightly squeezed Sayaka’s left hand.

“I… Last night, I tried to kill someone,” Sayaka said quietly. A few people gasped, others looked at her with wide eyes, while a select few stayed silent and unphased.

Sayaka shut her eyes. “That motive… it pushed me over the edge. I was willing to do  _ anything _ in order to get out. I ended up breaking my wrist in a fight with the person I attacked. ...If it hadn’t been for Enoshima-san and Kuwata-kun… Someone wouldn’t be here this morning.”

Naegi whispered, “Kuwata-kun and Enoshima-san?”

“They saved me,” Sayaka responded.

Togami cleared his throat. “How touching. Is this speech of yours supposed to make us sympathetic?”

Sayaka gulped.

Leon sent a glare at the heir. “Hey!”

Togami responded, “No matter how you try to phrase it, you just admitted to attempted murder.”

_ I knew it… _

“So, what are we going to do with her?” Togami said, “She’s clearly dangerous.”

Fukawa mumbled, “We should l-lock her u-up…”

Kirigiri said, “I hardly think that’s necessary-”

“And why is that?” Celeste asked, “Togami-kun has presented a valid point. We can’t just let Maizono-san continue to wander alone at her discretion.” 

Sayaka bit down on her lip.

Hagakure nodded feverishly “What if she tries to kill again? I d-don’t wanna die!”

Junko smacked the table, and got to her feet. “All of you! Shut the fuck up!”

Everyone looked at the fashionista in surprise. Her eyes were narrowed in absolute fury, and she spoke daggers, “Why are you treating her like this? Have you forgotten about that motive? It affected each and every one of us, so don’t even try to hide it!”

“Enoshima-san…” Sayaka whispered.

Junko replied, “I’m not done. Listen, none of you have the right to act all high and mighty.  _ Any _ of us could be in the exact same situation right now, so you can shut your fucking mouths before I shut them  _ for you! _ ”

Silence fell over the dining hall. Junko was breathing heavily, anger still burning in her eyes.

“Holy fucking shit…” Mondo whispered, shock clear on his face.

“Ahem,” Togami broke in, “I still think that something is in order here. Just a few days alone in her room should be enough punishment, correct?”

He punctuated his sentence with a glare.

Naegi replied, “She doesn’t need to be locked away!”

Leon nodded, “Maizono’s not dangerous.”

Kirigiri broke in, “Why don’t we have a vote? All we have to do is raise our hands to see if we’re in favour of Maizono-san being but in isolation or not.”

Togami said, “Fine. But those two-” he pointed at Sayaka and Junko- “aren’t allowed to vote.”

Junko gritted her teeth, but didn’t protest.

“All in favour of putting Maizono in isolation?” Togami said, raising his hand.

Celeste, Yamada, Hagakure, Fukawa, and surprisingly Mondo followed him. Sayaka gulped, and her hands began to sweat.

Kirigiri said, “And all those in favour of letting Maizono-san go without repercussion?”

Naegi’s hand shot into the air like a rocket. Kirigiri, Asahina, Fujisaki, Ishimaru, Sakura, and Leon did the same.

Kirigiri turned to Togami, a smirk just visible on her lips, “I believe that it's been decided.”

“Tch…” Togami turned away, his disdain obvious.

Sayaka slowly sat back down, relief washing over her face.

Ishimaru awkwardly cleared his throat. “Well! Assuming that we have no other interruptions, I think we should have some breakfast-”

“Are you kidding me?!”

Fifteen heads turned to see the monochrome bear they’d come to hate standing on the far end of the table.

Monokuma said, “I can’t believe this. After all the drama that just went down, you’re just gonna let her go? What kind of a show are you running here?”

Asahina said, “One that doesn’t believe in locking people up for making mistakes!”

Monokuma replied, “Ugh, you bastards are so  _ boring! _ Here I was, on the edge of my seat, when you losers just decided to throw in the towel and be some happy kids show! Well, I won’t take this lying down, oh no. You can bet your boots on that!”

Sayaka blinked a couple times.

Monokuma continued, “Well, anyways. I opened the nurse’s office, because you’re gonna need it at this point. Consider yourselves lucky!”

With that, he vanished.

Naegi piped up, “Ah, Maizono-san! I’ll take you to the nurse’s office, if you’d like!”

Sayaka rubbed clenched her good fist, “A-Are you sure?”

He nodded, “I don’t mind one bit.”

Junko threw in, “Mind if I join you? I’ve got a little medical experience.”

Sayaka smile, “O-Okay!”

Junko beamed, “Great! Kuwata, you coming?”

Leon looked up, “Me? You sure?”

“Come on!”

-

Twenty minutes and excessive bouts of excruciating pain later, Sayaka found herself lying on a bed, with her arm in a splint.

Junko said, “That should do it. In a few days, we’ll change that to a cast, and hopefully you’ll be good as new in no time!”

“T-Thanks…” Sayaka whispered.

Leon raised an eyebrow, “Where’d you learn to do that shit?”

For a fraction of a second, Junko tensed. In the next she said, “You would not believe how many broken bones come from inexperienced models on catwalks. Most of us have basic training like this, we’ve all had to patch each other up before heading back out there.”

“That’s very interesting, Enoshima-san!” Naegi remarked, “I don’t know anything like that.”

Junko shrugged, “You can find this out online. It’s not uncommon knowledge.”

Part of Sayaka wanted to remain skeptical, but the rest of her was just glad that she wouldn’t be stuck with a broken wrist forever.

Junko said suddenly, “Hey, Naegi? Can you watch over Maizono for a bit? I’m gonna grab her some food.”

Naegi nodded, “No problem.”

“C’mon, Kuwata. Let’s make Maizono some breakfast, okay?”

Leon protested, “But I can’t cook-”

“Neither can I,” Junko responded, “It’ll be an adventure!”

Leon snorted under his breath, but got up, and followed the fashionista out of the room.

Sayaka and Naegi sat in silence, before Sayaka croaked, “I’m really sorry.”

Naegi turned, “For what?”

Sayaka bit her lip, “For betraying you. I only asked to switch rooms with you, because I was planning on framing you for my murder. I wasn’t scared at all… I was manipulating you.”

Naegi said, “But you didn’t betray me, not in the end. Besides, it wasn’t your fault! It was Monokuma’s.”

Sayaka shrugged, “I only didn’t because Kuwata-kun and Enoshima-san were there for me. If it hadn’t been for them, I know I would have lost control.”

Naegi replied, “I don’t blame you. You’re my friend, Maizono-san, and friends trust each other!”

Sayaka forced a weak smile, “Thank you, Naegi-kun.”


	3. Toast (Mukuro)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don't have an excuse for how long this took just know that i am so fucking sorry, especially to the eight people who subscribed to this mess for some reason

“So uh,” Leon said, “What exactly are we going to make for Maizono? Considering that both of us apparently fucking suck at cooking.”

Mukuro tugged lightly on her wig. Her plan had mostly boiled down to ‘get someone else to do it,’ but maybe it was a better course of action to actually do it herself. Then again, would that be ‘in character’ for the girl she had so far been presenting?

Prior to the beginning of the Killing Game, Junko had provided her with a general script. Since Mukuro herself was apparently such a poor actor, her sister had felt it necessary. Perhaps it had been, but Mukuro had certainly been offended. She and Junko had been pretending to be each other since they were nine years old and begging on the streets of Tokyo.

Of course, her outburst in defence of Maizono earlier that morning had absolutely broken the character that she had so carefully sculpted. 

“Enoshima?” Leon prompted, scrutinizing her for a couple of seconds, “Are you there?”

Mukuro quickly responded, “Sorry, just thinking. I don’t really know what to do, since I can’t even make rice.” She hoped desperately that Leon’s perception skills were just as terrible as they had been during their school years together.

Luckily, he didn’t seem to pick up on the fact that she had pulled the response out of thin air. In fact, he nodded seriously, “I understand where you’re- You can’t make rice?! Even I can do that!”

“I’ve tried,” Mukuro said, “but no matter what I do, I always manage to screw it up. It just ends up melted to the bottom of the pot. I gave up after a while.”

Leon raised an eyebrow at her, “Wow. That’s actually almost impressive. Maybe the heat was too high?”

Mukuro shrugged, “I experimented a little bit, but I kept getting the same results, and I wasted a lot of rice.”

The incidents were unfortunately true. Mukuro could recall many a night in Fenrir, when she had a fire and only packets of rice to feed herself with. She had gone hungry for all of those nights.

Leon paused, then said, “Stupid question, but… you  _ did _ add water, right?”

“Are you supposed to?” Mukuro blinked.

Leon seemed completely dumbfounded, “Yes? Who taught you how to make rice?!”

Mukuro twirled a strand of the wig around her finger absently, “I guessed, actually. I didn’t really have anyone around to teach me things like that for a long time.”

“But you had someone who taught you first aid?” Leon asked skeptically.

Damn. Maybe Leon’s perception and critical thinking was better than she thought. Mukuro remedied, “That was after I got into modelling. I didn’t cook for myself, during that time. When I was younger, it was only my sister and I, and she didn’t know the first thing about cooking either.”

To her relief, he seemed convinced, “Shit, sounds difficult.”

Mukuro added, “I’d also rather not talk about that, if it’s okay with you. We should get back on topic, since we’re almost at the dining hall.”

Sure enough, the open double doors were just past the iron gate in front of them. As Mukuro pushed open the gate, Leon said, “Well… what about toast? It’s pretty hard to fuck that up.”

“Sounds good to me,” Mukuro said as they re-entered the hall.

The room was empty, save for Kirigiri - who looked up at them in that second - and Hagakure - who was still eating.

The lavender haired girl beckoned to Mukuro and Leon. The false fashionista swallowed nervously, but made her way up to Kirigiri without any further hesitation.

Once Leon had joined them, Kirigiri asked, “How is Maizono-san’s condition?”

“Better, I hope,” Mukuro replied, “She’s in a splint now, and her wrist is likely to recover very quickly. Other than that, she mostly needs food and rest.”

Kirigiri nodded, “I see. I take it that the two of you are getting her something to eat?”

Leon said, “Uh-huh! Naegi’s keeping an eye on her while we’re here.”

Kirigiri said, “Well, don’t let me keep you. Make sure… that she’s looked after.”

Leon gave the amnesiac a thumbs-up and jogged into the kitchen. Mukuro moved to follow him, but before she could get any more than a few steps away, Kirigiri reached out and grabbed her by the wrist.

“I have another question for you,” she said quietly, “Tell me, Enoshima-san. How were you and Kuwata-kun, of all people, the ones to ‘save’ Maizono-san? I don’t recall the three of you interacting at all before now.”

Apparently, removing nearly all Kirigiri’s memories hadn’t done any damage to her intellect. For one terrifying moment, as Mukuro met her piercing gaze, she felt as if the girl could see right through her disguise.

Mukuro managed to regain her composure in the next moment, “We haven’t, really. I couldn’t sleep last night, ‘cause I was so freaked over the motive, so I went for a walk. Then when I was moving through the dorms, I ran into Kuwata.”

“Hmm. Is that all there is to it?” Kirigiri said. From the inflection, Mukuro could tell that she wasn’t really asking.

“I don’t know everything,” Mukuro lied, “Kuwata just told me that she was panicking, and so I went with him to help her.”

“I see…” Kirigiri didn’t seem satisfied by the explanation, “Thank you. Apologies for taking up more of your time.”

Mukuro tried to flash a smile, but knew that it came out hollow. As she tugged away from Kirigiri’s velvet gloves and headed for the kitchen, feeling the lavender gaze burn into the back of her head as she walked.

She didn’t feel relieved until she was on the other side of the door, temporarily free from Kirigiri’s scrutiny. She leant against the wall for a moment, letting her heartbeat rest.

This kind of anxiety didn’t happen in Fenrir, but then again, she also wasn’t pretending to be her twin sister while acting in a psychological horror show during her time with the mercenary group.

“Yo, Enoshima!” Leon’s voice was unfortunately loud and clear, “What the hell took you so long?”

Mukuro crossed over to the counter that Leon was standing at, “Sorry, Kirigiri wanted to ask me something else. Did you already make the toast?”

The baseball player gestured to the active toaster, “Hopefully what I’m smelling is the sound of the bread grilling to perfection, not melting into slag.”

“Ah, okay,” Mukuro said, casually leaning against the counter, only for elbow to slip, causing her to teeter. Leon stifled a laugh, and Mukuro shot him a glare.

For a moment, she forgot that she was masquerading as Junko, that she and Leon weren’t just two stupid teenagers, messing around at eight-thirty in the morning. During their two years as classmates, Mukuro had  - against Junko’s advice, since all their classmates would all soon die in this killing game - somehow managed to befriend Leon.

And when the realization of reality hit her once more, Mukuro felt yet another wave of guilt wash over her. It didn’t have to end like this. She could have done something, done  _ anything _ to stop Junko from setting up this killing game.

But she hadn’t. Because deep down, Mukuro Ikusaba was nothing more than a coward in the skin of a soldier. 

The toaster beeped loudly, throwing the bread up with it, and it took everything in her not to scream. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest, and her face felt pale.

She was an embarrassment to Fenrir, truly.

To distract herself from guilt, Mukuro snatched the toast, ignoring the burning sensation on her fingers, and slapped it down on a ready plate.

“Oh, here,” Leon said, sliding a ceramic dish down the counter, “I went and got us some butter. You got all that under control?”

“Mm,” Mukuro replied, not really listening. Her only focus was on fitting back into her role so that she wouldn’t have any more slip ups. If she got caught, she was certain that Junko would kill her on the spot.

Within a few minutes, Mukuro and Leon were back in the nurse’s office, sporting a plate of toast. Maizono was staring at the floor, while Naegi was watching her nervously.

Leon knocked on the doorframe, spouting a cheery smile, “We brought food!”

Maizono looked up, a smile on her face, “O-Oh! Thank you very much, I appreciate it.”

Mukuro brought it over, rubbing the back of her neck, “Sorry that it’s not very much. We, uh, can’t exactly cook.”

“It’s lovely,” Maizono said, looking up at her. It was in that moment that her smile finally reached her eyes.

Mukuro hoped that her face wasn’t as hot as it felt, “T-Thanks…” She sidled over to sit in one of the chairs, her heart hammering yet again. It was just like someone as weak as her to be nervous over something so little.

The three of them hung awkwardly in the room while Maizono ate her breakfast, until the idol finally said, “Er… It’s sweet that you’re all so worried about me, but I think I’ll be okay. You don’t have to hang around.”

Naegi and Leon apologized and gave quick goodbyes, but Mukuro stuck to her chair. When Maizono gave her a strange look she said, “I have to check on your wrist in a bit anyways. And uh… I’d rather not leave you alone, just in case.”

Maizono’s expression hardened, “I… I understand. Thanks, Enoshima-san. You’re a really good friend.”

Mukuro flashed her a smile, hoping that it didn’t look forced. It was certain now, she had screwed up big time.

Within a couple of minutes, Maizono had drifted into a quiet sleep. Mukuro braced herself for alarm bells, as the blue haired girl was breaking the rules, but nothing came.

Instead, Monokuma appeared out of thin air, “Heya, sis!”

Mukuro hissed, “Shhh! Be quiet!”

Monokuma waved a paw, “It’s okay, nobody can hear us now. What’s up, Muku-chan? You been having a good day?”

“You know exactly how my day has gone,” Mukuro replied shortly.

Monokuma huffed, “Well, excuse me for trying to make small talk. Whatever, I just wanted to double check some of our preparations.”

Mukuro blinked, “Like what?”

“Liiiiike…. You still know what to do in the event of a school trial, right?” Monokuma asked, bouncing a tad.

Mukuro nodded, “Yes, I remember. I challenge you, and you throw me into the basement so I’m out of the way. You told me to memorize the plan, so I did.”

Monokuma replied, “Figured I should make sure. You seemed so busy getting attached to your dear classmates, I thought you might have forgotten your role here.”

It took everything in Mukuro’s power to avoid looking at Maizono. She swallowed the lump in her throat and said, “I haven’t forgotten anything. I’m just making sure that nobody gets suspicious of me.”

“If you say so!” Monokuma said cheerfully, “Anyways, I’ve got some more things to take care of, so I’ll see you later, sis! Toodles!”

With that, the bear vanished yet again.

Mukuro folded her arms tightly around her torso and looked at the tiles on the floor. Junko was right, she was distracted from her duty. She was Junko’s eye on the inside, and that couldn’t change, no matter what her feelings were.

Her loyalty was to her sister, first and foremost. This had been the case since they were born, and that was the way of things. Junko, despite her flaws, truly meant the world to her. Family was family to the end, and Junko was the only family that Mukuro had ever had.

She couldn’t change her alliance now. It would be suicide for her, and she had no idea what harm would befall her classmates, were she to follow through with the increasing amount of rebellious thoughts that were bubbling inside of her.

The monitor in the room buzzed. Mukuro raised her head, confused. It was nowhere near time for the nighttime announcement, unless Junko planned on screwing with everyone’s internal clocks as well. Thought, Mukuro wouldn’t put that past her twin, now that she thought about it.

_ “A body has been discovered! Could all students please gather in the gymnasium as soon as possible? Thank you all beary much!” _

Ah. Of course. Mukuro clutched the hem of her shirt, then let out a scream.


End file.
